Help For Hoarders!
We all want to have a tidy and attractive home, but often there’s one big thing getting in the way of this: all the stuff we own! Most people in the developed world own all kinds of things which they really don’t want or need, and tendencies to hoard can get in the way of your ideal vision of your home. If you’re predisposed to hoarding, here are some great tips to get things under control again…
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Set Yourself a Deadline
A lot of tasks, particularly ones that can wait like decluttering, are easy to put off again and again. When this goes on for too long, the job never gets done and you find yourself stuck in square one! If you’ve concluded that you need a big clear-out to get rid of all the junk you’re clinging onto, setting yourself a deadline can be a big help. Mark a date on your calendar, and decide firmly that by the end of that day, you’ll have far less clutter in the home. It may even be helpful to hire a service like Bay Wide Hauling for a certain date, and use that as your marker. Have a firm target, and it will be much easier to meet!
Handle Things Once, and Only Once!
A lot of people who are considered hoarders share one bad habit. This is the tendency for picking something up, deciding that you should throw it out or find another home for it, and then putting it aside “for now”. This is how pieces of junk end up circulating around the home, and never making it to the dump! When you hit the big day, and start sorting through the things in your home, make a point of handling things once, and only once. This will prompt you to make a firm decision and follow through with it as soon as you touch something.
Throw Away Unused Things
Having a book on gardening on the shelf doesn’t make you a gardener, and having a recipe book doesn’t make you a chef. Yes, you might get around to using this or that object eventually, but is it something you’ll definitely want to hold onto for the foreseeable future? Avoid getting any token items for hobbies until you really take to that hobby, and throw away anything that’s gone far too long without being used.
Use a Box
This is a great trick for hoarders who want to de-clutter, but really can’t decide on what to do with a given item when they come across it. The next time you find one of these items, and can’t decide immediately, put it in a box somewhere out of the way. Then, write “box” on your calendar six months later. If you feel the need to find that box and whatever’s in it between now and that date, then go ahead and keep the item. If you reach the day without it crossing your mind, throw it away!
